Bill Text: MI SB0662 | 2013-2014 | 97th Legislature | Introduced

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Bill Title: Natural resources; inland lakes; repair or replacement of a failed seawall; provide for a minor permit category. Amends secs. 30101 & 30105 of 1994 PA 451 (MCL 324.30101 & 324.30105).

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 8-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2013-11-05 - Referred To Committee On Natural Resources, Environment And Great Lakes [SB0662 Detail]

Download: Michigan-2013-SB0662-Introduced.html

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SENATE BILL No. 662

 

 

November 5, 2013, Introduced by Senators ROBERTSON, NOFS, MOOLENAAR, GREEN, BOOHER, BRANDENBURG, COLBECK and HANSEN and referred to the Committee on Natural Resources, Environment and Great Lakes.

 

 

 

     A bill to amend 1994 PA 451, entitled

 

"Natural resources and environmental protection act,"

 

by amending sections 30101 and 30105 (MCL 324.30101 and 324.30105),

 

section 30101 as amended by 2009 PA 139 and section 30105 as

 

amended by 2013 PA 98.

 

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

 

     Sec. 30101. As used in this part:

 

     (a) "Bottomland" means the land area of an inland lake or

 

stream that lies below the ordinary high-water mark and that may or

 

may not be covered by water.

 

     (b) "Bulkhead line" means a line that is established pursuant

 

to this part beyond which dredging, filling, or construction of any

 

kind is not allowed without a permit.

 

     (c) "Dam" means an artificial barrier, including dikes,

 

embankments, and appurtenant works, that impounds, diverts, or is

 

designed to impound or divert water.

 

     (d) "Department" means the department of environmental

 

quality.

 

     (e) "Expand" means to occupy a larger area of an inland lake

 

or stream than authorized by a permit issued under this part for

 

marina mooring structures and watercraft moored at the marina.

 

     (f) "Fund" means the land and water management permit fee fund

 

created in section 30113.

 

     (g) "Height of the dam" means the difference in elevation

 

measured vertically between the natural bed of an inland lake or

 

stream at the downstream toe of the dam, or, if it is not across a

 

stream channel or watercourse, from the lowest elevation of the

 

downstream toe of the dam, to the design flood elevation or to the

 

lowest point of the top of the dam, whichever is less.

 

     (h) "Impoundment" means water held back by a dam, dike,

 

floodgate, or other barrier.

 

     (i) "Inland lake or stream" means a natural or artificial

 

lake, pond, or impoundment; a river, stream, or creek which may or

 

may not be serving as a drain as defined by the drain code of 1956,

 

1956 PA 40, MCL 280.1 to 280.630; or any other body of water that

 

has definite banks, a bed, and visible evidence of a continued flow

 

or continued occurrence of water, including the St. Marys, St.

 

Clair, and Detroit rivers. Inland lake or stream does not include

 

the Great Lakes, Lake St. Clair, or a lake or pond that has a

 

surface area of less than 5 acres.

 

     (j) "Marina" means a facility that is owned or operated by a

 

person, extends into or over an inland lake or stream, and offers

 

service to the public or members of the marina for docking,

 

loading, or other servicing of recreational watercraft.

 

     (k) "Minor offense" means either of the following violations

 

of this part if the project involved in the offense is a minor

 

project as listed in R 281.816 of the Michigan administrative code

 

or the department determines that restoration of the affected

 

property is not required:

 

     (i) The failure to obtain a permit under this part.

 

     (ii) A violation of a permit issued under this part.

 

     (l) "Mooring structures" means structures used to moor

 

watercraft, including, but not limited to, docks, piers, pilings,

 

mooring anchors, lines and buoys, and boat hoists.

 

     (m) "Ordinary high-water mark" means the line between upland

 

and bottomland that persists through successive changes in water

 

levels, below which the presence and action of the water is so

 

common or recurrent that the character of the land is marked

 

distinctly from the upland and is apparent in the soil itself, the

 

configuration of the surface of the soil, and the vegetation. On an

 

inland lake that has a level established by law, it means the high

 

established level. Where water returns to its natural level as the

 

result of the permanent removal or abandonment of a dam, it means

 

the natural ordinary high-water mark.

 

     (n) "Project" means an activity that requires a permit

 

pursuant to section 30102.

 

     (o) "Property owners' association" means any group of

 

organized property owners publishing a directory of their

 

membership, the majority of which are riparian owners and are

 

located on the inland lake or stream that is affected by the

 

proposed project.

 

     (p) "Reconfigure" means to, without expanding the marina, do

 

either of the following:

 

     (i) Change the location of the dock or docks and other mooring

 

structures at the marina to occupy an area of the inland lake or

 

stream that was not previously authorized by a permit issued under

 

this part.

 

     (ii) Decrease the distance available for ingress and egress to

 

an outside slip as described in section 30106a.

 

     (q) "Riparian interest area" means that portion of an inland

 

lake or stream over which a riparian owner has an ownership

 

interest.

 

     (r) "Riparian owner" means a person who has riparian rights.

 

     (s) "Riparian rights" means those rights which are associated

 

with the ownership of the bank or shore of an inland lake or

 

stream.

 

     (t) "Seasonal structure" includes any type of dock, boat

 

hoist, ramp, raft, or other recreational structure that is placed

 

into an inland lake or stream and removed at the end of the boating

 

season.

 

     (u) "Seawall" means a vertically sloped wall constructed to

 

break the force of waves and retain soil for the purpose of shore

 

protection.

 

     (v) (u) "Structure" includes a wharf, dock, pier, seawall,

 

dam, weir, stream deflector, breakwater, groin, jetty, sewer,

 

pipeline, cable, and bridge.

 

     (w) (v) "Upland" means the land area that lies above the

 

ordinary high-water mark.

 

     Sec. 30105. (1) The department shall post on its website all

 

of the following under this part:

 

     (a) A list of pending applications.

 

     (b) Public notices.

 

     (c) Public hearing schedules.

 

     (2) The department may hold a public hearing on pending

 

applications.

 

     (3) Except as otherwise provided in this section, upon

 

receiving an application, the department shall submit copies for

 

review to the director of the department of community health or the

 

local health department designated by the director of the

 

department of community health, to the city, village, or township

 

and the county where the project is to be located, to the local

 

conservation district, to the watershed council established under

 

part 311, if any, to the local port commission, if any, and to the

 

persons required to be included in the application pursuant to

 

section 30104(1). 30104. Each copy of the application shall be

 

accompanied by a statement that unless a written request is filed

 

with the department within 20 days after the submission for review,

 

the department may grant the application without a public hearing

 

where the project is located. The department may hold a public

 

hearing upon the written request of the applicant or a riparian

 

owner or a governmental unit or other person that is entitled to

 

receive a copy of the application pursuant to this subsection.

 

     (4) After completion of a project for which an application is

 

approved, the department may cause a final inspection to be made

 

and certify to the applicant that the applicant has complied with

 

the department's permit requirements.

 

     (5) At least 10 days' notice of a hearing to be held under

 

this section shall be given by publication in a newspaper

 

circulated in the county where the project is to be located, to the

 

person requesting the hearing, and to the governmental units and

 

other persons that are entitled to receive a copy of the

 

application pursuant to subsection (3).

 

     (6) In an emergency, the department may issue a conditional

 

permit before the expiration of the 20-day period referred to in

 

subsection (3).

 

     (7) After providing notice and an opportunity for a public

 

hearing, the department shall establish minor project categories of

 

activities and projects that are similar in nature, have minimal

 

adverse environmental effects when performed separately, and will

 

have only minimal cumulative adverse effects on the environment.

 

The department may act upon an application received pursuant to

 

section 30104 for an activity or project within a minor project

 

category without providing notices pursuant to subsection (3). All

 

other provisions of this part, except provisions applicable only to

 

general permits, are applicable to a minor project. The department

 

shall establish a minor project category under this subsection for

 

repair or replacement of a failed seawall.

 

     (8) The department, after notice and an opportunity for a

 

public hearing, shall issue general permits on a statewide basis or

 

within a local unit of government for projects that are similar in

 

nature, that will cause only minimal adverse environmental effects

 

when performed separately, and that will only have minimal

 

cumulative adverse effects on the environment. Before authorizing a

 

specific project to proceed under a general permit, the department

 

may provide notice pursuant to subsection (3) but shall not hold a

 

public hearing and shall not typically require a site inspection. A

 

general permit issued under this subsection shall not be valid for

 

more than 5 years. Among the activities the department may consider

 

for general permit eligibility under this subsection are the

 

following:

 

     (a) The removal of qualifying small dams.

 

     (b) The maintenance or repair of an existing pipeline, if the

 

pipeline is maintained or repaired in a manner to ensure that any

 

adverse effects on the inland lake or stream will be minimized.

 

     (9) The department may issue, deny, or impose conditions on

 

project activities authorized under a minor project category or a

 

general permit if the conditions are designed to remove an

 

impairment to the inland lake or stream, to mitigate the effects of

 

the project, or to otherwise improve water quality. The department

 

may also establish a reasonable time when the proposed project is

 

to be completed or terminated.

 

     (10) If the department determines that activity in a proposed

 

project, although within a minor project category or a general

 

permit, is likely to cause more than minimal adverse environmental

 

effects, the department may require that the application be

 

processed according to subsection (3) and reviewed for compliance

 

with section 30106.

 

     (11) The department shall develop by December 31, 2013 and

 

maintain a general permit for activities in drains legally

 

established pursuant to the drain code of 1956, 1956 PA 40, MCL

 

280.1 to 280.630. The general permit is subject to all of the

 

following:

 

     (a) The general permit shall cover installation and

 

replacement of culverts, clear span bridges, and end sections;

 

culvert extensions; drain realignments; installation of bank

 

stabilization structures and grade stabilization structures; spoil

 

placement; and other common drain activities that use best

 

management practices.

 

     (b) A drain commissioner or drainage board may submit an

 

application for an authorization under the general permit on a

 

countywide basis. The department of agriculture and rural

 

development may submit an application for an authorization under

 

the general permit on behalf of an intercounty drainage board on a

 

drainage-district-wide basis.

 

     (c) The department shall grant or deny an authorization under

 

the general permit by March 1 if the drain commissioner or drainage

 

board applies for the authorization by the preceding January 20. An

 

authorization under the general permit is valid until March 30 of

 

the year after the year in which the authorization is granted.

 

     (d) By December 31 of each year, the drain commissioner or

 

drainage board shall submit a report to the department that

 

includes the names of the drains on which activities were performed

 

under the general permit during that calendar year, the locations

 

and nature of the activities, and plans and other documentation

 

demonstrating that those activities met the general permit

 

requirements.

 

     (e) A drain commissioner or drainage board is not eligible to

 

be granted a new authorization under the general permit if

 

significant violations of the general permit under a previous

 

authorization granted to that drain commissioner or drainage board

 

have not been corrected.

 

     (12) As used in this section: , "qualifying

 

     (a) "Failed seawall" means a seawall that has deteriorated to

 

the point that it no longer effectively breaks the force of waves

 

or retains soil for the purpose of shore protection and meets

 

either or both of the following:

 

     (i) The seawall is currently breaking the force of waves and

 

retaining soil across a minimum of 50% of its length and there is

 

evidence of a previous seawall along the other 50% of its length.

 

     (ii) The seawall was breaking the force of waves and retaining

 

soil but was damaged by a single catastrophic event which occurred

 

within the 2 years prior to the repair or replacement of the

 

seawall.

 

     (b) "Qualifying small dam" means a dam that meets all of the

 

following conditions:

 

     (i) (a) The height of the dam is less than 2 feet.

 

     (ii) (b) The impoundment from the dam covers less than 2 acres.

 

     (iii) (c) The dam does not serve as the first dam upstream from

 

the Great Lakes or their connecting waterways.

 

     (iv) (d) The dam is not serving as a sea lamprey barrier.

 

     (v) (e) There are no threatened or endangered species that

 

have been identified in the area that will be affected by the

 

project.

 

     (vi) (f) There are no known areas of contaminated sediments in

 

the area that will be affected by the project.

 

     (vii) (g) The department has received written permission for

 

the removal of the dam from all riparian property owners adjacent

 

to the dam's impoundment.